Farooq Abdullah expresses grief over loss of lives in earthquake

Srinagar, Mar 22 (PTI) National Conference (NC) president Farooq Abdullah Wednesday expressed grief over the loss of lives and destruction caused by the earthquake that struck Afghanistan, Pakistan and India.

He expressed his condolences to the families of the victims and wished a speedy recovery to the injured.

“I am deeply pained to know about the loss of lives and property in Afghanistan and the larger Af-Pak region and adjoining central and South Asian region. I wish success to the underway relief and rescue operations in Afghanistan,” Abdullah said.

The tremors also jolted Jammu and Kashmir with people running out of their homes for safety, and there are reports that the jolts have caused cracks in various public and private buildings across J-K, he said.

“I hope the administration will ascertain the facts and carry out a safety audit of such structures wherever required,” Abdullah added.

The Lok Sabha MP from Srinagar said the Kashmir Valley falls in a high-risk zone, and while one may not completely eliminate the possibility of damage due to an earthquake, it is certainly possible to mitigate the risk by building earthquake-resistant structures.

“I hope the disaster management department and other agencies concerned will start an informative campaign on this issue. Further, there is also a need to make people aware and sensitise them about preparedness measures to develop a culture of readiness for any eventuality,” Abdullah said.

Strong tremors jolted large swathes of north India on Tuesday night as an earthquake of magnitude 6.6 struck the Hindu Kush region in Afghanistan. At least 12 people died and nearly 250 more were injured in Afghanistan and Pakistan.